Ukraine's counterattack failed, US "changes" strategy

Ukrainian soldiers in Donetsk (Photo: Reuters).

"Still fresh from last year's failed counteroffensive in Ukraine, the Biden administration is rolling out a new strategy that de-emphasizes territorial gains and focuses on helping Ukraine counter Russia's new advances while also working toward the long-term goal of strengthening its fighting forces and economy ," the Washington Post quoted US officials as saying on January 27.

According to the sources, "the new US plan (in 2024) marks a sharp change from last year, when the US and allied militaries rushed to train and provide sophisticated equipment to Kiev in the hope that they could quickly push back Russian forces."

“Obviously, they are unlikely to try to do the same kind of massive push across all fronts that they tried to do last year,” said a senior US administration official.

“The idea now is to help Ukraine maintain their position on the battlefield,” the US official said, but “put them on a different trajectory to be much stronger by the end of 2024… and put them on a more sustainable path.”

According to the Washington Post , the US hopes the above plan can be implemented with active support from other countries, including the UK and France, for Ukraine.

The US and its Western allies are showing signs of losing interest in providing aid to Ukraine as the war of attrition drags on.

Several media outlets, citing anonymous sources, said that the Biden administration is adjusting its strategy on Ukraine due to uncertainty about the prospects of aid to Kiev in the near future.

President Biden has made supporting Kiev a priority, as US weapons and financial support have played a key role in Ukraine's conflict with Russia.

But right-wing Republicans are opposed to this, refusing to approve new aid to Ukraine unless Democrats agree to tighten the process of combating illegal immigration across the southern border of the United States.

According to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, the US has provided more than $44 billion in military aid to Ukraine since the outbreak of hostilities, more than the next four largest contributors – Germany, Britain, Norway and Denmark – combined.

Nearly 40% of US aid to Ukraine is non-military, including spending on humanitarian needs such as housing refugees and direct economic support to keep the Ukrainian government functioning.

With its economy crippled by war, Ukraine relies on donations to maintain basic services such as schools, hospitals and fire departments.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky recently called on Europe to produce more weapons and warned that any ceasefire would benefit Russia.

Ukraine launched a counteroffensive in early summer, but has made only limited progress so far. Several senior Western officials have publicly acknowledged that Ukraine’s counteroffensive has not gone as expected.

The head of Ukraine's military intelligence agency, Kirill Budanov, also admitted that the counter-offensive was not only "behind schedule" but also "completely out of plan" for Kiev.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-gioi/ukraine-phan-cong-bat-thanh-my-xoay-chieu-chien-luoc-20240127160947873.htm